Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 28th, 2010
In the 2006 hit The Devil Wears Prada there was a single line that summed up Meryl Streep’s pitch-perfect portrayal of icy fashion editor Miranda Priestly: “That’s all.” The real-life inspiration behind the character, Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour, has such a commanding presence that even those few words are hardly necessary. Her disapproval is apparent with a single glare.
The September Issue follows Wintour and her loyal band of editors as they prepare for the most important month of the year in fashion. As one employee says, September in fashion is like January for most people: it’s a fresh start. Throughout the 90-minute documentary director R.J. Cutler captures an intimate, surprisingly compelling look behind the scenes of an institution that is synonymous with fashion.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Archive Authors on February 28th, 2010
Hellhounds is the tale of Kleitos and Princess Demetria—a “Greek” soldier and his bride to be. When Demetria is poisoned on their wedding day by a jealous friend, Kleitos enlists the help of a witch to travel to Hades and retrieve his bride’s soul. The soldier and his loyal friends—each with their own unidentifiable accents—make their voyage into the underworld only to face the wrath of Hades’ hounds when they arrive. They must escape with Demetria’s soul and reunite it with her physical body before Hades claims her as his bride. All the while, the four-legged beasts are hot on their trail for a taste of blood.
Usually made-for-television movies really aren’t trying to be anything they’re not. Hellhounds often seems like it’s exceeding its grasp due to the script’s melodramatics. You get the feeling director/NYPD Blue actor Ricky Schroeder is trying to tap into that 300 style of storytelling, but it falls short. If you’re looking for stimulating dialog or even good acting, look elsewhere. Expect plenty of vacant expressions and emotionless delivery from the cast, especially stone-faced lead Scott Elrod.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on February 27th, 2010
Several years ago, I went through my divorce. We were clearly not made for each other and spent many nights arguing over the simplest things. Despite our constant bickering, our divorce went reasonably smooth and we were able to agree on most things. Thankfully, we did not have kids to further complicate the proceedings. However, if we did have kids and had arranged dual custody, I wonder if it would have turned out like Gary Unmarried: Season One.
Gary Brooks (played by Jay Mohr) is recently divorced. He has his own place and tries to do the best he can. He also takes care of his two kids, Tom & Louise (played by Ryan Malgarini & Kathryn Newton) on alternating weekends and holidays. Most importantly, he is trying to care of his own life and he finds that single life is a very tough struggle. Especially when that tough struggle involves dealing with your ex-wife Allison (played by Paula Marshall) on a daily basis.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by David Annandale on February 26th, 2010
Every seven years, thirty assassins descend on an unsuspecting city and slaughter each other, all the while being observed by hijacked security cameras for the benefit of the high rollers who are betting on the outcome. The previous winner was Ving Rhames, and he thought he had walked away from the life after that tournament. But then his wife was murdered, and he learns that the killer is in the new contest (taking place this time in England). Also taking part is the fatalistic Kelly Hu, who winds up being the reluctant protector of drunken priest Robert Carlyle, who even more reluctantly has become a long-shot competitor in the tournament after accidentally swallowing a tracking device that paints him as a legitimate target.
This sounds a bit more complex than the film really is, as the plot is primarily there just to facilitate the spectacular butchery that follows. The action is fast and furious, and the blood is as copious as you're going to get this side of Hostel. All of which is more than passably entertaining, and there are also some surprisingly witty moments, usually courtesy of Carlyle. In its enthusiasm to go over the top, however, the film does dip its toe into some of the same ugly misogyny that so pollutes the Crank films. Still and all, bloodthirsty action fans could do worse than spend 95 minutes in The Tournament's company.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 26th, 2010
For all intents and purposes, it appears just like any routine Fall day throughout the world. People are busying themselves about their normal concerns. Suddenly everyone on the planet blacks out for exactly 2 minutes and 17 seconds. Just think about that part for a moment. Every human being collapses at the same moment. Think about all of the things that people are doing at any given moment. Driving cars. Flying planes. Performing delicate surgical procedures, or just walking across the street. Pretty much any activity is going to become dangerous as the blackouts occur. 20 million people worldwide die in the event.
Now, what makes this show different from your typical high-casualty disaster series is not the global body count. It's what happens to the folks who don't get killed that sets this series up. During that 2 minutes and 17 seconds, every person has something called a flash forward. It's a vision, if you will. They get a glimpse of the future from their own perspective. Investigation soon reveals that everyone's future vision was the exact same moment in time: April 29th, 2010 at 10:00 PM. Each person experiences that moment in their lives. Further investigation confirms that the visions are accurate and persons that were, or will be as the case may be, together at that time share the same confirmable experiences. Who or what caused these flash forwards, and why? Mark Benford's flash forward finds him looking at an investigation board containing crucial clues to the flash forward investigation. It puts him square in the lead to take the case, because now he's got a sneak peek at what key pieces of evidence will be found. He also has a line on pivotal players in the case. The feds set up a program called MOSAIC, which encourages people to share their flash forwards online. It allows people to make some sense of their visions, while giving the government a working database of flash forwards. Further clues uncover the fact that there were two people who were not effected by the blackouts and were up and around while the rest of the world was knocked out. The images are fuzzy, but their identities are of vital priority.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on February 23rd, 2010
So what's the Scooby Gang up to this time, you might ask. We meet Velma's younger sister for the first time here. Young Madelyn has been off studying magic at the Whirlin Merlin Magic Academy. It seems a giant mythological griffin has been stalking the halls of the old school. So who ya gonna call? Scooby and the gang conduct the usual investigation, uncovering the usual suspects.
Scooby Doo has spanned generations and over 40 years. Since the 1960’s the name and conventions have become a part of the pop culture. The original cartoon series had a series of conventions. The Scooby Gang would drive around in their green Mystery Machine van and solve ghostly mysteries. Fans of the show quickly grew to learn that these spirits and goblins were usually just normal people using scare tactics to get revenge or make a profit. The cartoon classic spawned music albums, live action movies, and several new shows and animated features.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on February 23rd, 2010
They say that history is written by the winners. The winners are the ones who fought and the ones who conquered this great land of ours. In reality, history comes from all walks of life, it is unfortunate some are not able to write about it. But once in a while, you find people out there who are able to collect the ideas and tales and weave them into a book. That book will then sell many copies and influence a generation.
Howard Zinn was born in 1922 during the roaring twenties. His youth saw the Depression, the New Deal, and he even participated in World War II as a bombardier. In 1964, he accepted a position at Boston University to teach civil liberties and political science. For many years, he was asked to give advice on finding a history book that was fair and spoke the truth. He didn’t really have an answer until 1980 when he decided to write one.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on February 23rd, 2010
Nia Vardalos casts herself across from her My Big Fat Greek Wedding love interest James Corbett, in an attempt to rekindle the magic that was the unlikely Big Fat phenomenon. As star, writer, and director, the weight of the film falls onto her shoulders and thankfully she has enough carry to drag a rather sparse plot from beginning to end with a some genuine laughs.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Michael Durr on February 21st, 2010
Greetings here from your favorite neighborhood reviewer and Spidey-expert: the infamous Kedrix. I certainly have a habit of appearing whenever there is a Marvel or DC superhero involved, especially if the source material happens to be animated. Needless to say, when the opportunity to review Spectacular Spider-Man both volumes 6 & 7 came available, I jumped to the task. Somehow, we missed Volume 5 (I have seen the first four), but I'm sure we can pick right back up and get to the spectacular action. (one paragraph in and we are already using bad puns, tsk tsk)
Volume Six of Spectacular Spider-Man is something short of a breather for Spidey as he is recovering from some run-ins at the hands of Mysterio & Kraven the Hunter. He even had yet another altercation with Dr. Octopus. Things are also looking up for the web slinger as he even gets invited to Flash Thompson's birthday party. Little does he know he is about to run into the Sandman who is still looking for his big score.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by William O'Donnell on February 20th, 2010
Steven Seagal plays an LA cop who is forced into early retirement after being betrayed and shot by his partner. After an astounding recovery, which included blasting his partners brains all over the hospital walls (I'm assuming it was part of his rehabilitative therapy), he is hired by an old friend to be the head of security for his friend's daughter. This family is linked to some bad dudes who are keen on uranium and kidnapping, so Seagal is forced to slowly shoot everyone near him while mumbling something about being a tough guy or whatever.
